


Yellow Daffodils

by orphan_account



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: A sequel of sorts to a heartbreaking fic I read, Gen, Sorry Not Sorry, short and sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2019-11-06
Packaged: 2021-01-24 10:20:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21336649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: It has been fifty years since the war for Fódlan ended.Fifty years since blood was shed in the name of a tyrant Emperor and an exiled King.Fifty years since a life was lost far too soon.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Yellow Daffodils

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cara252](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cara252/gifts).

> Hello all! Sorry for the long absence. Real life has been a pain in the arse, as has my work load. On top of that, I've started a writing course which I have been working hard on. 
> 
> That being said! 
> 
> I read this story by Cara252 called Purple Hyacinth, and it honestly broke my heart. So much so that I had to write this to try and cheer myself up, only to make myself more depressed. 
> 
> It's been sitting in my laptop for a while so I figured I may as well let it loose on the world. 
> 
> According to Google, daffodils are meant to symbolise rebirth and new beginnings. Don't hate me if it's wrong :<
> 
> Enjoy!

It has been fifty years since the war for Fódlan ended.

Fifty years since blood was shed in the name of a tyrant Emperor and an exiled King.

Fifty years since a life was lost far too soon.

Every year, the people of Fódlan, now united as the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus with the inclusion of the former Adrestian Empire and Leicester Alliance, hold a celebration to commemorate the end of the war and to remind themselves of the sacrifices that took place to ensure a bright future for the generations to come.

Despite the war ending in Verdant Rain Moon, the Day of Victory is held on the 24th day of Blue Sea Moon. The reasoning behind this has been lost to all, save for the ex-King of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd.

It’s the birth date of the former leader of the Leicester Alliance.

The man he tried to save, but was too late.

Claude von Riegan.

Dimitri coughs into his handkerchief as the carriage rolls through the countryside towards Derdriu, a major port that was once the capital city of the Leicester Alliance. The five years he spent on the run from the Imperial Army, where he was forced to bunker down wherever he could and eat weeds off the ground, have caught up to him. His lungs hurt with every breath he takes, and he can feel his heart slowly stopping as his time comes to an end. He knows he is a dead man, but he has one final wish before he passes on: to visit the memorial statue for Claude in the centre of Derdriu.

His eldest daughter, Artemis Cybele Bladdyd, hands him a vial of medicine to sooth his aching throat. She tucks the blankets around her aging father, a brave smile on her face. Because of his rapidly declining health, Dimitri stepped down from the throne ten years ago to let Artemis take over. Born a few years into Dimitri's reign, Artemis is every bit the spitting image of her father, with bright blue eyes full of wisdom and the softest blonde hair that she keeps back in a loose braid like Dimitri’s old friend, Ingrid of House Galatea.

“It won’t be long, father.” She says as she dabs the blood away from Dimitri’s chin. “We are approaching Derdriu. I can hear the gulls already.” She opens the carriage window to look outside, the sound of gulls and the smell of sea salt filtering through. Dimitri closes his eyes and thinks back to the fateful day fifty years ago. He managed to storm into the Alliance capital with the Kingdom army, answering a call for aid from Claude as the Imperial troops storm of the city. He wasn’t quick enough to stop Lord Arundel from throwing a spear at Claude, resulting in his demise. Before he died, he passed on a special necklace from Almyra, his homeland. Dimitri later found out that it was a posthumous marriage proposal. Even now, all this time later, he wears it around his neck as a bitter reminder of what he had lost. If he had just moved a little faster, not been hesistatant to thrown Areadbhar, answered the call sooner, done _something to help..._

“Father? We’re here.”

Dimitri slowly opens his eyes as the carriage judders to a halt. Artemis opens the carriage door and steps out into a cheering crowd gathered on the streets. She curtsies and waves to the people, and holds a hand out to help Dimitri exit the carriage. He gratefully accepts her hand and hobbles down the special ramp placed in front of the door. No longer the embodiment of strength he once was, even simple tasks such as walking down stairs proved too much for him.

The carriage driver lowers down a wheelchair from the luggage rack for Dimitri to sit on, and Artemis tucks him in with a thick blanket. Despite the scorching summer heat, all Dimitri can feel is the cold. He’s been cold all his life, even in the hottest of summer days.

Artemis hands Dimitri a bouquet of flowers and wheels him from the carriage and into the centre of Derdriu, where the festivities are well underway. Children run amok as they clash wooden swords with each other, adults dance to live music in a style of dancing involving them wearing bells on their wrists, teenagers buying food from the numerous market stalls dotted around. No matter their age, everyone is having a good time. And at the centre of it all, surrounded by flowers, is the statue of Claude. Commissioned when Dimitri took to the throne, the memorial captures Claude in all his youthfulness, with his Heroes Relic Failnaught sculptured in exquisite detail.

“Tell me about Claude, again, Father.” Artemis comes to a stop at the foot of the memorial and kneels down next to Dimitri. “What was his favourite prank to pull on you? Painting steel lances so they appeared to be made of silver, and then laughing when you effortlessly snapped them in half?”

“That was one his old favourites, yes.” Dimitri looks up at Claude and smiles sadly. “He was always a bit of a jokester at the Academy, always deliberately teasing his classmates and pulling schemes to get the upper hand. I remember him saying he was going to put harmless poison in everyone’s food before the Battle of the Eagle and Lion so that his house would win by default.” He starts to laugh before doubling over in a coughing fit. He wipes the blood away and takes another vial of medicine before continuing. “But he was more than that. He wasn’t from Fódlan, and wanted everyone to be treated equally no matter where they came from. He fought so hard to make his vision a reality, even dying for it. Instead of allowing the Imperial Army to kill the innocent civilians and destroy the city of Derdriu, he evacuated everyone and drew them into the docks, at the risk of his own life. He relied on me to save him, and I was too late.”

Dimitri doesn’t cry, having shed his tears for Claude a long time ago, but the people surrounding him wail into their handkerchiefs as he recalls all he remembers about the boy who turned into a man, and who he failed to save. He heaves himself out of his wheelchair with the help of Artemis, and slowly limps towards the pile of flowers at the base of the monument. He lightly kisses the bouquet in his hands, a dozen daffodils, and places them amongst the masses of hyacinths and tulips.

“We will meet again shortly, Claude.”

**Author's Note:**

> The original story in all it's heartbreaking glory: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21008222
> 
> Fun fact: Artemis is the Greek Goddess of, amongst other things: hunting, the wilderness, the Moon, and wild animals. Her symbols include a bow and arrow, and deer. 
> 
> Cybele is a funny Goddess who has such a confusing background that I'll just link the wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybele. But the most interesting part is: "In Greece, Cybele is associated with mountains, town and city walls, fertile nature, and wild animals, especially lions." 
> 
> Hmmm >_>


End file.
